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Brandon Cooper, a former AAA umpire, sued the MLB on April 24. In his suit, he claims that he was sexually harassed by a female umpire as well as discriminated against by MLB because he is a bisexual male.
Cooper worked in the Arizona Complex League last year before being sacked. He officially filed the lawsuit in federal court in Manhattan, naming both MLB and PDL Blue, Inc. He claims he was told a diversity hiring rule prevented him from getting a high-level position.
The suit claimed, according to The Washington Post:
“Historically the MLB has had a homogenous roster of umpires working in both the minor and major leagues. Specifically, to date there has never been a woman who has worked in a (regular) season game played in the majors, and most umpires are still Caucasian men.
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"To try to fix its gender and racial diversity issue, defendants have implemented an illegal diversity quota requiring that women be promoted regardless of merit.”
Cooper's lawsuit alleges that Ed Rapuano, an umpire evaluator, and Darren Spagnardi, an umpire development supervisor, told the umpire that at least two women must be among every 10 new hires.
Brandon Cooper claims bisexuality cost him MLB job
Brandon Cooper's lawsuit doesn't just target what he deems wrongful termination and an unfair promotion system to be an MLB umpire. It also alleges that he was sexually harassed.
The suit accuses Gina Quartararo, another minor league umpire, of discovering his bisexuality, making crude jokes, and using homophobic slurs towards him and another umpire, Kevin Bruno.
The fired umpire said he notified authorities but that MLB instructed him to undergo sensitivity training. He was later accused of violating the anti-discrimination and harassment policy.
He would then be fired after being skipped over for the playoffs, alleging that he was one of 26 from a group that was let go. He has officially filed for wrongful termination and retaliation based on sexual orientation. Cooper also alleges that there is video evidence of Quartararo's misconduct.
The league, which is based in New York (hence the suit being filed in Manhattan), has not commented on the situation as of now.
